Iceland — 10 days in the land of fire and ice
I decided to write this so that it is useful to someone planning their trip along the ring road (route 1) in Iceland.
As all great stories begin with a map, here is one, in case you need it. Below is a good approximation of my route I took along the route 1 (with a few detours).
For a country that is about the same size as Ohio and geographically being the latest country in the earth’s history, Iceland has a lot to offer. My trip touched only the outer rim of the country, but I am told the inner parts are equally diverse and beautiful.
My journey starts on a Peugeot 308 that did not give up even on the crazy gravel roads, where you inevitably end up if you are traveling along the ring road. It starts with a waterfall and ends with one, with many mountains, lakes, towns, glaciers, fjords, and (again) waterfalls in between.
I enjoy reading small blocks of information on boards near many landmarks or on tourist maps, and with so much time on my hands for 10 days, I probably read all the ones I could lay my hands on, gorging information. So if you are reading this, you might find bits and pieces of trivia that I may have picked up from there.
Everyone doing the ring road has their own version of the trip, and no matter which one you take, it is going to be one of the best ones of your lifetime!
Adventure is worthwhile in itself — Amelia Earhart
One of the most accessible inner highlands of the country is in the Thingvellir National Park, which is also a part of the Golden Circle (the inner loop of the map). It is about 6–8 hours round trip from Reykjavik, if you consider stopping at places along the way. The first stop is near the river Oxarar. Here, you can actually walk between the two tectonic plates of Eurasian and North American continents, that is splitting the country into two parts — one going to the North America and other one to the Europe.
Next on the road is Geysir, a geyser similar to the Old Faithful in the Yellowstone National Park, but it erupts more frequently. I did not get a good picture because when I was there those eruptions were short-lived.
Then at the end of the paved road is Gullfoss (meaning the golden falls), which is both, loud and spectacular. The mist rising from the waterfall can be felt all the way in the parking area, which is at least a few hundred meters away.
On my way back to Reykjavik, I met two German students hitchhiking their way back to the city. We had a good talk about Germany and Austria (Bavaria and Vienna — hopefully my next destination), The Shining, and Donald Trump (yep, they were worried too).
Reykjavik reminded me of Seattle in many ways; on a sunny day it is stunning and beautiful, but rain is not far off in the sky. Other random facts: it is the northernmost capital in the world, one of the safest and cleanest cities, and (according to my Airbnb host) has the highest number of artists and writers per capita.
While day hiking in the city, I ended up discovering this amazing park in the heart of the city. It is called Tjörnin (which is Icelandic for a pond), and on a quiet sunny afternoon, you can see the reflections in the pond and enjoy the sun. I ended up visiting this place multiple times while I was there, spending few hours reading books.
Reykjavik is not a very big city (and that’s good). You walk down a few streets and you might end up at a place where you have been before. It has good (but a bit expensive) restaurants, and surprisingly a large number of good vegetarian or vegan restaurants (or options) than I expected. Most of them centered in the downtown area or near Austurstræti. But overall, food is not a problem as long as you are in the city.
Many modern structures in the city are designed to symbolize their Viking heritage or unique geology. The Sun Voyager (top-left) symbolizes a fancy viking ship heading out to discover uncharted territories. Harpa (top-right) — a music concert hall in the city and a glass building with windows whose shape is inspired from the basalt structures commonly found in Iceland. Sometimes at night the entire building is lit up to mimic the northern lights.
After spending two days in the city, I started my journey on a not-so-viking ship towards the north.
My next stop was in the Snaefellsnes peninsula. The number of people on the road and outside drastically drops once you leave Reykjavik. But the landscape remains visually stunning (in a different way).
The distinct horizontal lines visible on the mountains here are formed from the glaciers that once covered these peaks and shaped the mountains.
Kirkjufell — or a church mountain gets its name because of the shape. Although, I would have preferred to name it as a wizard mountain because of its pointy hat. There is a small waterfall that flows near it and is a popular spot among photographers.
Snaefellsnes peninsula is described in a classic “A Journey to the Center of the Earth” by Jules Verne, as a place where Lidenbrock and Axel start their journey towards the earth’s centre from Snæfellsjökull (an active volcano — below).
At bottom of the mountain, you can see the frozen lava fields which were once flowing directly into the ocean. Another sight that is very common in Iceland.
After stopping at a few random waterfalls and amazing cliffs of Arnarstapi, I headed towards my next stay in Borgarnes. It is a small village, where apparently all the restaurants (or may be the only one in the village, as per my host) had closed, when I reached there. So I was on my own in this beautiful house with great views of the Atlantic Ocean, trying to figure out what to eat for dinner. Thanks to skyr (Icelandic yogurt) and fruit juice, I had in my car, I thoroughly enjoyed the views.
The next morning, I found a great coffee shop and had the best swiss mocha ever.
And then I started towards Akureyri — capital of the North, on a sunny day that will soon turn into a windy and rainy one, staying true to the saying common in Iceland:
If you don’t like the weather now, just wait a few minutes.
It was the opposite in my case!
Iceland is mostly flat, with not many tall trees. So while driving on the road you can see to a great distance. You can see whether it is raining at a distance or it is sunny. And if you are driving on a mountain that foresight is increased to such an extent that sometimes it is scary.
After reaching Akureyri, I headed straight to the Goðafoss — meaning the waterfall of Gods. Drizzling rain and mist rising from the falls gave it a very mystical feeling and the water here has a natural turquoise color because of its glacial sources.
Akureyri is the largest town in Iceland after Reykjavik. The town like any other town in Iceland is beautiful (not sure how they manage to do it) and has many restaurants that are open at least till 10 pm.
The next day, I headed to Húsavík — whale watching capital of Iceland, to watch (wait for it) whales. We managed to see humpback whale(s) a few times — our guide said it was just one whale that showed up multiple times, but I like to think it was not the same at least for the sake of an argument. While on the boat, I meet a nice couple from Seattle and we had a very lengthy chat about food in Iceland, the Pacific Northwest, Microsoft (because that’s what we do), and housing prices in Seattle.
They were doing the ring road in the anti-clockwise direction and were kind enough to offer some great tips for my road ahead.
Driving back south, I accidentally ended up on a gravel road (route 87), and it was too late to make a U-turn from there. Thankfully, my car didn’t give up and I didn’t have to cross any rivers (without a bridge — which apparently is a thing here, if you have a good 4WD).
Lake Mývatn is a beautiful lake in the north with an equally beautiful mountain — Bláfjall (meaning the blue mountain) in the background. I stepped out of my car to take pictures of the lake and I was swarmed with flies all around (no exaggeration here). The hitchhikers traveling with me in my car told me Mývatn means lake of flies in Icelandic. Little did I know!
Bláfjall, which looks like a mountain with its head sliced off, was formed because of a volcanic explosion underneath the icecap that shifted the land up. Cool stuff!
Based on the recommendations of people I met, I decided to have lunch at Vogafjós Cowshed Cafe. I highly recommend eating at that place if you happen to visit that area, they serve amazingly fresh farm food!
After a satisfying lunch, I headed towards Dettifoss — the most powerful waterfall in Europe.
Dettifoss and Selfoss (another waterfall upstream — pictured below) are situated on a river (I will spare the details, because I didn’t know at that time) in Vatnajökull National Park. The entire river takes two spectacular falls within a distance of a few hundred meters.
In hindsight, I wish I had spent an extra day in the north as there are so many things to do and places to visit in the Mývatn area. Nonetheless, my rest of journey was equally amazing. My time here was running out so I started heading east to the wastelands and eastern fjords of Iceland with a pit stop in Egilsstaðir.
After my stay in Egilsstaðir, where my host offered me some great advice (for which I am very thankful, given I previously experienced, how bad driving on gravel roads in Iceland on a two-wheel drive can be), I headed towards Seyðisfjörður, based on the recommendations of other people I met there.
Another thing you will quickly notice while driving here, is the number of sheeps and horses in the country. They are everywhere — and very likely the most numerous inhabitants of the island, except for puffins may be.
From Egilsstaðir, I drove along the eastern coast, where you are mostly driving on the paved roads through the beautiful fjords of the east and come across small coastal towns.
Before going to Jökulsárlón, I decided to stay at a small coastal town called Höfn, which is in the south east. There is a small hill at the end of the town, from where you can see the ocean and the mountains with glaciers coming down from them. Probably one of the most perfect and peaceful places to see a sunset.
Throughout my trip, I was checking report on northern lights. Along the way, I met many people who had a chance to witness it on previous nights. So before going to bed, I looked at the skies and it seemed very cloudy and decided not to wake up even though the forecasted activity was good. The next morning, other guests in my Airbnb told me that the entire sky got cleared and was lit up. What a missed opportunity!
Anyway, as you head towards south from east, there is a sudden increase in the number of glacier sightings. Almost from everywhere along the road, you can see a glacier coming down from a mountain. And just one hour west of Höfn is a lagoon called Jökulsárlón — which means a glacier lagoon.
Jökulsárlón is formed because of a glacier calving in the lagoon. These magnificent icebergs then float their way out into the ocean.
Some of these icebergs break off into smaller pieces and then their inner blue core becomes visible.
These icebergs which make it to the ocean are sometimes brought back to the beaches due to high-tide.
Another turn, another glacier visible from the road. It is probably Fjallsárlón, not sure.
Soon after that you again enter in the Vatnajökull National Park (Skaftafell entrance). From there I took a small hike to Svartifoss (meaning the black waterfall). I remember to have seen it on a postcard, when I was a kid. It was good to see it in person.
The southern part of Iceland is the rainiest part of the country, and but also has the most stunning waterfalls. There are waterfalls every few kms along the road formed by the glacial rivers flowing down into the sea from the inner highlands.
Skógafoss - meaning the forest falls is one of the most beautiful waterfalls, I have ever seen. It looks like a drape falling from a cliff, but the spray of water from the falls is really intense if you are up close. Then a few kms ahead is Seljalandsfoss. It is tall and falls off from the top of a small cave-like structure. You can walk behind the waterfall and enjoy it from all 360 degrees.
Then here I am trying some different angles and mimic the cover page of the Lonely Planet book, that I used for this trip.
Next on the road is the one of the most infamous landmarks of the country in recent past — Eyjafjallajökull. The houses (pictured below) were in direct line of impact when it erupted, but the community was resilient and stood up again in very less time. However, recently another active volcano — Katla, much more powerful than this and not far away from this place, has started to make news.
Volcanoes are a very integral part of this country. Most places in Iceland has access to water and air which is heated by geo-thermal sources, and hence paid for by a fixed cost. There are numerous hot springs all over the country and everything is powered by these volcanoes.
I had kept one buffer day in my trip in case things go south because of the weather. So I spent two days in this area, exploring places and going on short hikes based on recommendations of few people, I met here or by asking around.
Leaving one day as buffer did pay off here, because finally on the last day the skies cleared, although only for a few hours, but I was finally able to see the northern lights.
As soon as I found out the lights were active, I took off with my car and parked it somewhere on the road side where it was dark enough (or really dark). Seeing it for the first time, I felt it was every bit worth the hype. In the end, I guess, I can say I saw everything, I had hoped to see here on a good day!
So in conclusion, without a doubt, this was the best road trip for me. I had a chance to see several amazing landscapes and landmarks (unfortunately, not all of them made it to this post only because of time), and every one of them stood up to its hype. It is rarely something you can say when you visit one entire country. Even if you take a detour or a different route, it will be equally beautiful and fulfilling.
I met new people from many countries and had long chats with them sharing experiences; some of them were kind enough to invite me to a dinner or breakfast or even both.
For me the highlight of this trip was the entire journey and not any one of the individual destinations. If you are thinking of going on one, I highly recommend it.
